


salvage each piece

by Anonymous



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: M/M, Natasha is fine though, No bashing though, Slow Burn, Tags May Change, not team Cap friendly, very slow
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-09-28
Updated: 2020-09-22
Packaged: 2021-03-08 02:47:43
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 840
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26598562
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/
Summary: or in which the Soldier is not, will not be and never have been James Bunanchan Barnes.
Relationships: James "Bucky" Barnes/Tony Stark
Kudos: 23
Collections: Anonymous





	salvage each piece

The Soldier's code is The Asset and it's association, The Winter Soldier. That is it's code, and though the group of people it is with rarely call it that, those are simple facts. Steve Rogers, codename Captain America, calls it "Bucky". However, Bucky is a name, and the Soldier has a code. Rogers tells it that it is his name nonetheless. It has gotten very good at playing the role of Bucky Barnes, although some days it's efforts are futile and it resigns for James Barnes, the traumatized POW. It is rarely able to shed either disguise and become the Asset without prompt as it is under constant surveillance. Natasha Romanov, a Black Widow (or The Black Widow, depending who you ask) is not the one to do so often, as she is usually "busy" (the disappearances of many people lining up with her "busy" days tell otherwise, but it observes the others do not care enough to notice). It is only able to become The Asset around her. It makes her comfortable, as she is most used to the Asset. It notices the wary looks when it plays the part of someone else.

Roger's group, recently renamed the Ex-Vengers or, less formal, the _Rogues_ , calls it "Barnes". It is more detached than Bucky or James, and when acting the Soldier makes the fact that the identity in question would like that much more than something personal, the others keep it that way. It does not feel anything for it, but without the wipes there is a faint feeling of... pride, or perhaps satisfaction. It is hard to identify said feelings when it has lived without them it's entire life. The person who had previously lived in this body is still recovering in the back of their mind, dealing with his own memories. It would be illogical for it to throw it's own memories onto him, when he is needed. (Even with it's many abilities, it is well aware that most of it's adaptability to the identity of James "Bucky" Barnes comes from him, the man himself. ~~It would be too quiet without him either way.~~ ) 

The New Avengers does not interact with it much. They talk to Natasha and occasionally to James Barnes but avoid the rest of the Ex-Vengers and the identity of Bucky Barnes. They have not met the Asset, and it does not want them to. It is positive that if it was revealed it was never really Barnes, it would be thrown into a prison cell, and he would never recover. (It knows this because it knows that it is on thin ice as the identity of a _person_ , it concluded that the treatment of an object will be worse.) It does not prompt interaction as either identity on it's own, and goes through the Council if it needs assistance. (The others simply try to talk to Anthony Stark, but it does not have that freedom or that pride. It knows how it's existence bothers many victims of the Soldier.) If it requires interacting with the New Avengers, it puts on a show of James Barnes without the cracks that it has in places with the Rogues. The New Avengers would notice the Soldier (and it is... unsure if it is willing to _risk the mission_.)

He protests. He lets it know that the plan is stupid. That he wants to interact with more than those "idiots", as eloquently put, and perhaps take over for a bit to talk to the New Avengers himself (without revealing the Soldier's involvement, he promised, and though it does not trust many it believes him.) It has refused thus far for his recovery to continue on the path it does, for him to lay back while it takes the wheel so he can figure things out. It is broken itself, but it's used to pain and the scattering. It can wait for him to recover so it can disappear. (It does not.. wish to disappear, but it should not wish for anything. The thought has only strayed for seconds. They share a brain, after all.) It knows that he needs more social interaction, so it tries it's best to hold him over.

It, code Soldier or Asset, is required to give over control to him, identity James Buchanan "Bucky" Barnes or what remains, today. He wishes to talk to the New Avengers, perhaps negotiate a way to indirectly apologize to Stark ("Maybe through a letter," he'd brainstormed, and it looked back at him. "I could give one of them a letter. They pass it on to him if they deem it good, and if not..." he shrugs. "Than maybe we're not worth forgiving." and it nodded.) and tell Rogers off for hurting Soldier many times. (It was more emotional than anything. It countered that it didn't have feelings, but he pointed out that it is technically still a child. It thought that was fair enough.) It would say it feels nervous, but it identified it's current emotion as relief.

**Author's Note:**

> This is mostly just a starting point; I put the most effort I could into this. It won't have regular updates since my thoughts jump around and Marvel isn't my main fandom. I'll update as often as I can get inspiration!


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